[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 56 (Monday, April 9, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E405-E406]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 OATH OF CITIZENSHIP ON APRIL 13, 2018

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. PETER J. VISCLOSKY

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 9, 2018

  Mr. VISCLOSKY. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure and sincerity 
that I take this time to congratulate thirty individuals who will take 
their oaths of citizenship on April 13, 2018. This memorable occasion 
will be held at the United States Courthouse and Federal Building in 
Hammond, Indiana.
  America is a country founded by immigrants. From its beginning, 
settlers have come from countries around the world to the United States 
in search of better lives for their families. Oath ceremonies are a 
shining example of what is so great about the United States of 
America--that people from all over the world can come together and 
unite as members of a free, democratic nation. These individuals 
realize that nowhere else in the world offers a better opportunity for 
success than here in America.
  On April 13, 2018, the following people, representing many nations 
throughout the world, will take their oaths of citizenship in Hammond, 
Indiana: Maria Rebolloso, Pablo Serrano, Armando Martinez, Cristina 
Olivia Vasquez, Ricardo Rivera, Alejandra Sandoval, Yang-Yi Avia Lin 
Shemesh, Juliana Isabel Mercado Velazquez, Leticia Luna Swinson, 
Benjamin Tovar Lopez, Angelica Magallon de Amezcua, Mercedes Lorenzo de 
Diaz, Haroldas Vysniauskas, Octavia Guijosa Granados, Manoel Jacques 
Etienne Couder, Alejandrina Perez de Davila, Mohammad Yousef Mustafa 
Hijaz, Ma del Carmen

[[Page E406]]

Barajas, Aida Batisse Tamba, Mamoon Arif Raza, Irene Patrick, Cordelia 
Eruaga, Zilha Basic, Bore Trajkovski, Milan Sorgic, Ann-Marie Thomas, 
Muhammad Rizwan Ashraf, Isabel Cristina Padilla, Georges El Howayek, 
and Zubair Ul Haq.
  Although each individual has sought to become a citizen of the United 
States for his or her own reasons, be it for education, occupation, or 
to offer their loved ones better lives, each is inspired by the fact 
that the United States of America is, as Abraham Lincoln described it, 
a country ``. . . of the people, by the people, and for the people.'' 
They realize that the United States is truly a free nation. By seeking 
American citizenship, they have made the decision that they want to 
live in a place where, as guaranteed by the First Amendment of the 
Constitution, they can practice religion as they choose, speak their 
minds without fear of punishment, and assemble in peaceful protest 
should they choose to do so.
  Mr. Speaker, I respectfully ask you and my other distinguished 
colleagues to join me in congratulating these individuals who will 
become citizens of the United States ofAmerica on April 13, 2018. They, 
too, are American citizens, guaranteed the inalienable rights to life, 
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We, as a free and democratic 
nation, congratulate them and welcome them.

                          ____________________